CHELSEA SIGN FORWARD JOAO FELIX FROM ATLETICO MADRID FOR £46.3 MILLION
Chelsea Football Club have completed the permanent signing of striker Joao Felix from Spanish giants Atletico Madrid, the club announced on Wednesday. Felix, who previously spent 6 months at Stamford Bridge on a half-season loan in the 2022/23 campaign, now returns to West London on a permanent basis.
As first reported by European transfer journalist Fabrizio Romano, the transfer will cost Chelsea £42 million in total fixed fees and up to £4.3 million in add-ons, bringing the total transfer fee to a whopping £46.3 million. Felix, 24, signs with the Blues on a lengthy seven-year contract, which will keep him in the English capital until June, 2031.
“It’s a chance for me to find a home,” said Felix. “After two loans [at] Chelsea and Barca, I needed to stay permanently in one place. There is no better place for me to be than Chelsea. I see a perfect place to shine.”
“It was a little bit of a lot of things that made me want to come back: the project, the club, the league, the fans, the time I spent here that I loved. I felt really good when I was here, despite the results we had. I’m really happy to be back.”
Felix made 20 appearances for Chelsea during his first stint with the club and managed to score 4 times during that span. The Portuguese international has won league titles in both Portugal and Spain with European giants Benfica and Atletico Madrid and is looking to replicate his previous success in the English game.
Speaking via Chelsea’s website, Felix said: “I’ve developed as a player in a lot of ways: the perception of the game, and the spaces the ball can arrive easily where I can make more impact… I’ve kind of changed since I was last here. I’m 24 now. I’ll be 25 in November. I feel like I grew up as a player, that’s normal with age. I’m more prepared for the Premier League.”
“I just want to give my best to the team and the club: goals, assists. This season I want to play as many games as I can, help the team and the club be on top of world football again. Chelsea needs to be up there. This season we have to do a big season, and I am going to do my best to help.”
The 2019 Golden Boy winner had two phone calls with new Chelsea Head Coach Enzo Maresca prior to signing with the club, which helped convince him to join. Felix said he enjoyed watching Chelsea on Sunday in their Premier League opener against defending champions Manchester City, despite their eventual 2-0 loss, and marveled at Maresca’s methodology, style of play and football philosophy.
“It will suit my game perfectly,” said the Viseu-born forward.
Speaking about Felix, Maresca said during his press conference on Wednesday: “First of all, he is a good player. He is a talent, we know [that] already. The club already knows him from [when he was here] two years ago.”
“I think, the good thing about Joao also, is that he can play different positions with us. He can play inside, he can play as a no.9, he can play outside so, this [versatility is one of] the reasons why we have signed him.”
Maresca told reporters, however, that Felix will not feature for the club’s UEFA Conference League play-off first leg against Swiss club Servette FC on Thursday. Asked if Chelsea, who have made 13 total signings this summer alone, were still going to add to their ever-expanding squad, Maresca said: “Anything can happen.”
Chelsea have been on a rampant spending spree during the summer transfer window, completing the signings of Willian Estevao, Filip Jorgensen, Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, Tosin Adarabioyo, Samu Omorodion Aghehowa, Omari Kellyman, Aaron Anselmino, Mike Penders, Renato Veiga, Caleb Wiley, Marc Guiu, and Pedro Neto.
“I have never seen this happen before in English football,” said former Arsenal striker Alan Smith via Sky Sports News on Wednesday. “In world football, what’s happening at the bridge but it makes for good viewing, I think.”
“Obviously, Joao Felix knows the situation, he’s seen what’s over there at Stamford Bridge and he’s happy to come. It seems like he enjoyed his time in London before, why wouldn’t you? And he did play well, he offered ‘things’ at times. Not always, but just another piece in the jigsaw for Chelsea, an ever-ending, expanding jigsaw.”
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: Anton Zaitsev. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.